Today i’m gonna post my illustration based from AKB48 PV – Sakura no Ki ni Narou. This PV actually came from J-Drama called as Sakura no Tegami. For those who haven’t watch the drama, you should watch it, the storyline is so great as well as the PV. So here it is my illustration

Takahashi Minami 「高橋みなみ」. One of the member of AKB48 under the Team A and one of the Kami 7, the most famous 7 member in AKB48 we can call it as an untouchable member, that had been choose in Senbatsu or election that voted by AKB48 fans. Kami is a term of Shintoism it means the Divinity or the supreme being, or Gods. This term actually is made by Japanese fans to represent that this 7 members are untouchable, their position is above all of the family48 member.

This time i’ll show and explain to all of you, about Hannya Mask 「般若」. Hannya mask is one of the mask from Noh theater, it easy to recognize because it possesses two sharp bull-like horns, metallic eyes, and a leering mouth split from ear to ear, but most of people outside Japan didn’t know the name of the mask they just know the shape of the mask.

The Hannya mask portrays the souls of women who have become demons due to obsession or jealousy, Japanese people believe this kind of mask is really live, it can show different kind of emotion when we tilt it up and down. The Hannya mask is said to be demonic and dangerous but also sorrowful and tormented, displaying the complexity of human emotions. When the actor looks straight ahead, the mask appears frightening and angry; when tilted slightly down, the face of the demon appears to be sorrowful, as though crying. In Japan and Western Hannya mask is a famous image for tattoo, represent brave, and dangerous of the tattoo owner.

Back to traditional Japanese things, and this time i present to you a Japanese utensils for making a good Mochi or Rice cake. Japanese people call it as Kine and Usu 「杵と臼」. This utensils always used alongside, Usu (the mortar) usually made by a stone that carved into a bowl shape, or made by wood. Kine (the mallet) made by wood and usually used alongside with usu, this mallet length is about 1 meter. To make a perfect rice cake or Mochi, usu and kine operated by 2 person, usually men, One person swings the kine to pound the rice in a similar motion to chopping wood, and another person give water to the mochi dough and flip it. This activity requires precission in timing, because the person who swing the kine will hit the mochi dough rapidly fast and the person who give water to the dough need to flip the dough before the kine hit their hands. In another words Between each swing, another person puts his hand in the bowl to turn the rice. Timing is critical for safe operation of the usu.

Like any other traditional food, or snacks, Japanese people believe that mochi pounded in an usu and kine tastes better than mochi that has been processed by an electric machine.

Made in Japan Volume 6 : Kine and Usu

Here’s some video from the making of Mochi in Nara city, perfecture Nara, Japan. The amazing part start at 1:00 😀

Its time for Japanese fashion, the Uchikake 「内掛け」. Well before that, i will ask you, everyone knows Kimono right ? So Uchikake is a type of Kimono, a Kimono for a bride, in western its like a wedding gown. The form is like Furisode 「振袖」with long sleeved, but furisode only worn by unmarried woman in Seijin Shiki [The coming age ceremonies], or worn by unmarried female relatives of the bride at weddings and wedding receptions.

Using Uchikake is more complicated than furisode, there’s a lot part that need to tied inside the Kakeshita, lot of decoration and detail. Usually the color of uchikake is White, but there’s a lot of color beside white, such as Red, Black, Gold, and Blue, like furisode, there so much motif for uchikake, like crane, sakura, pines, flowing water, fish, and many more.

But unlike furisode, the bottom of Uchikake is padded to trail along the floor, so when the woman bride walk, they need to lift the lower part of uchikake.

It’s time for ‘Geta’ 「下駄」. Geta is a resemble of Wooden clogs and flip flops, with elevated wooden base and a fabric thong to make our feet had a strong grip to the geta itself. Usually geta worn with Kimono, but sometimes in summer Japanese peoples use it with Yukata (Kimono for summer) or with modern T-shirt. Not only in summer, geta also used in winter or in rain, because the wood can make our feet keep dry. There’s 6 type of Geta, depend on the height and form of the wooden base, but Japanese people usually used geta with 2 wooden base and 5 cm height.